Thursday, 22 December 2016

There's a big trend towards travelling for fitness and holistic wellbeing experiences. Did it kick off with Eat, Pray, Love? Who knows...but it continues apace and the offerings get more and more intriguing, exciting and sometimes, ridiculous, every year. The beautiful thing is that whether you're travelling with a group of friends, your partner or family or you're a solo traveller, you'll find events, customised itineraries and experiences that appeal to your need for learning, seeing, doing and being all over the world.

Look for the Angkor Empire Full and Half Marathon in August 2017 for a road race around the Angkor temples that has previously attracted between 500 and 1000 participants. There's a Marathon Half Marathon, 10km and 3km Family Run to choose from.

Alongside local offerings including the Canberra Yoga Festival (#Canberrasana !) and Byron Spirit Fest, there is also Wanderlust Festival offering yoga, wellness and lifestyle inspiration all over the world year-round. Try New Zealand in and Oahu, Hawaii in February for a start. See wanderlust.com/festivals The Byron Spirit Festival takes place in March 2017 offering tantra, dance, music and yoga.

Consider travelling to learn as well. Many people do their initial and ongoing Yoga Teacher Training overseas and this gives an excellent perspective on how yoga is a universal language. Perhaps you could do a language or cooking course also.
In Ubud, Bali (my favourite!) you can do Raw Food workshops and courses. You can even do your Raw Chef qualification if you schedule ahead. The school gets rave reviews on social media and Trip Advisor. Check out Raw Food Bali.
Find ways to travel and really immerse yourself in the local culture for the time you're there, whether it's a week or a year.

BODY PIERCING

Multi-ear piercing is still trending. Thanks to the celebrity and fashion editor's favourite body piercer, Maria Tash, the trend continues for chic and neat piercings that sparkle up the ear, in and around it. Her choice of jewellery, as well as her finesse in placing it to best highlight facial features, is highly refined and speaks to the trends of 2017. Spiked rings say "I'm a little bit punk rock" but delicate and in gold, they also say "I'm also a businesswoman, a blogger-author-globetrotting fashionista".

Melbourne's own Sammah Chehade is a piercing guru and has a particular eye for knowing which jewellery size, style and placement on the ear or face will best bring out their features. She advises according to facial structure, hair and skin tone and your style preferences. I have entrusted her with both needle and gun piercings (see my article Can I Work Out After A Piercing? )and she is divinely comforting, calm and radiates joy and passion for her work. She's available for consultations on multiple ear piercings, facial and body piercings. You can reach her via email or on Instagram.

ACTIVE WEAR AND FITNESS FASHION

There is a growing trend in consumers wanting to know the ethical credo of their fashion. This extends to athletic wear and fit fashion. Is it fair trade? Is the cotton sustainably farmed? Are the conditions for manufacturers and workers involved in production overseen and audited by an ethics and fairness body?

Expect, as far as colours and style, to see more wild patterns, bold colours and plenty of green and pink if the Pantone colour predictions for 2017 are a reliable guide (and they are relied upon by fashion and design industry internationally so I'd be buying stocks!)

In that spirit, brands like Onzie that are proudly LA made and owned still float my boat. Their designs, campaigns and ethos are all about loving yoga, loving movement, loving fashion and being a traveller of the world. See their instagram for international ambassadors and global "Take Me There" inspirations.

Canada-originated yoga brand Lululemon ALWAYS brings it's top game to design. Sure, it's not going to attract your budget bargain bin buyer but this is gear that goes the distance and it is designed for performance. It is not just for yoga either - the customer service staff are thoroughly trained so if you go in and talk to them about what you do for training and lifestyle, your preferences around style and colour, you can be pretty sure they'll know exactly where to direct you. They also have a fantastic initiative which is weekly community classes where teachers provide a class at no cost in-store. A great way for teachers to connect with their local community and also for people to trial a class without the commitment of studio or gym fees. Pictured is the new Energy Print bra and leggings. Add to cart.

RAW FOOD, VEGAN DIET, SEAWEED & TURMERIC

The rise of "vegan" as a key Search Engine Optimisation term will continue apace. Cassie Cross from Unique Health Products confirms "Australia's packaged vegan food market is set to grow over $60 million in value to reach $215 million by 2020. In fact, "vegan" is googled more in Australia than anywhere else in the world." Still, I am not vegan and while I think it has a very strong ethical basis, I fear that people are adopting a dietary approach that cuts entire food groups in the misguided belief that cutting entire these is a weight loss method that works longer than a week. The vegan approach to a diet rich in legumes, soy and plant proteins, grains and vegetables will hopefully inspire people in their approach rather than dictate it. While there are many foods which increase in nutritional value when heated (tomatoes, for example), I believe that raw, unprocessed and organic foods have a high "prana" value and this elevates my spirit when I'm preparing, sharing and eating my food. What's that mean, you ask? Prana is the "life force". Think about it. That gorgeous, ripe, organic kiwi fruit and big bowl of raw, organic walnuts are now sitting in front of you because they came from a seed, got rained on, absorbed sunshine and minerals and vitamins from the earth, and they were nurtured into ripeness right up until the moment that you picked them (even if i was out of a box at the market!). They have a story, an energy to them that fuels your body and your soul. As often as possible, try to eat raw, unprocessed foods daily. This might be a handful of almonds, or a bowl of cherries, or a fresh, green salad. As often as possible, grow your own herbs, veggies and fruit and go to local markets and organic grocers. Find a connection with your food.
"Seaweed is predicted to be the next big superfood," explains Cassie Cross. "It's full of vitamins, minerals, protein, antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties."

The Whole Foodies is a locally based provider of good, nourishing foods including oils, nut spreads and a whole range of seaweed based products. Their site is an excellent source of recipes too.Check out The Whole Foodies.
I'm a total kelp noodle addict. Get on board that train STAT!

Turmeric shows no sign of abating as the herb du jour. This is as it should be - it is excellent as an immune booster, makes a sunshine coloured latte, and acts as a powerful flavour for rice, roast vegetables, curries and soups.

If you're at a total loss as to how to prepare meals beyond a poached egg and a pack of noodles, try a cooking school. Many local markets run workshops and on-site cooking schools by chefs and nutritionists now. A google search for "raw food" or "healthy food workshops" in your city should give you an idea of what's happening. You could also consider travelling to do a course overseas.

WELLNESS CENTRES

In Ubud, the divine Yoga Barn (loved by yogis and travellers worldwide) incorporates yoga studios, ayurvedic health practitioners, a restaurant, juice bar, dance space and overnight accommodation options all in the one mega-space. It does so in a beautifully integrated way that doesn't feel like you are trekking between one separate business and the next. This is an entire lifestyle offering in the once place. Just as health practitioners have become savvy and many doctors combine forces within one medical practice, so it will keep serving wellness businesses and individuals to combine forces and create easily accessible places that are holistic in nature. Myotherapy followed by pilates, shopping for organic coffee and a pair of locally made yoga pants should be all happening under one roof. Will existing stores merge with local wellness practitioners and cafe owners/juice bars to run pop-ups before taking the leap? Let's hope so. I'd love to be able to do a Community Class at Lululemon and then sit around in a dedicated cafe space drinking juice and talking to the local fashionista yogis!